You know the name LaserLight, right? The cheapo CD distributors that wholesale to dollar stores? Well... this appears to be one of LaserLight's typical releases, complete with skimpy info, crappy graphics and the wrong song titles. But... wait! Look closer. Instead of a rehash of whatever public domain recordings happened to be on hand, this CD is actually a rare 1964 live show. And, an incredible one at that! The All Music Guide says it's from Europe's 1964 American Folk Blues Festival and states, “considering that Chess Records never recorded Muddy's live set during this era, this disc is priceless.” No kidding. A 55 minute set that sounds more like it’s at an intimate juke joint than a festival. This stuff is the real thing - stripped, slow blues with spare guitar, piano & harp leads that just... hang... together... by a thread. It would take the Rolling Stones another 5 years to nail this down. And, you just can’t buy that lead slide sound anymore. Curiously, there's hiss and phase between the songs (only when the audience is applauding), but when the music starts up again, you'll feel right in front of the band (with Otis Spann on piano), circa 1964.

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Also, for clarification, the cover scan and the text printed here both originated at the blog, Never Get Out Of The Boat in April of 2007 (http://nevergetoutoftheboat.blogspot.com/2007/04/muddy-waters.html). The text has since been updated, after it was lifted and posted here (without credit) by woodstock69.